the biblical rapture

Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. 1Corinthians 15-51-53 KJV
In the Christian world, there is no greater hope than that of receiving Jesus Christ of Nazareth at His Second Coming. This promise, which comes accompanied by the salvation, redemption, and glorification of our mortal souls, is what keeps millions of Christians throughout the world persevering in their faith day after day before the incessant temptations of the world, of Satan, and of our own human condition corrupted by the fall.

Surprisingly, the rapture is also the doctrine that has been most widely misinterpreted and, consequently, poorly taught in most of the Christian world.

Our Lord Jesus Christ tells us in detail what the events will be like that trigger the rapture in chapter 24 of the Gospel of Matthew:

"For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until now, no, nor ever shall be. And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect’s sake those days will be shortened." — Matthew 24:21-22

The Savior tells us plainly and directly that there will be "great tribulation." We know that this is the time of trouble of which the prophet Daniel also spoke, since He indicates to us that it will be a tribulation "such as has not been since the beginning of the world until now, no, nor ever shall be"—a completely definitive statement. He also says that those days, referring to that great tribulation, would be shortened for the sake of the elect, the people of God. Our Lord Jesus Christ continues by saying:

"Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other." — Matthew 24:29-31

Right in these passages, Jesus Christ of Nazareth clearly declares that, after that "great tribulation," the sign of the Son of Man would appear in heaven and He will be seen coming on the clouds of heaven to gather His elect from all over the world. Right in this statement made by God Himself, we have the perfect description of how the rapture will occur: it will be right after the great tribulation. This is the biblical rapture.

Sadly, the Word of God does not seem to be convincing enough for those who claim to worship Him, since in 1830, and based on a 17th-century Jesuit text, the idea of two dispensations was created: one for Israel and another for the Church. Basically, Paul's analogy in Romans chapter 11—in which the apostle teaches that the Gentiles (a wild olive tree), who by faith have been converted to Christ, have been grafted into the people of Israel (a natural olive tree)—was completely ignored; and it was established that, before the prophecies concerning Israel could be fulfilled, the church had to be secretly raptured and only then would the "great tribulation" happen. However, this would not be the only error of this belief system known as dispensationalism: it also shifted the prophecy of the 70 weeks into the future, rather than as a historical event that already had its prophetic fulfillment.

Thanks to the spread of this error supported by biblical passages taken out of context, today's evangelical churches, confused and blinded in a self-imparted virtue, consider themselves exempt from the trial of faith, from the "time of Jacob's trouble" that ancient Israel had to endure during the exodus and the various captivities to which it was subjected, or that the church suffered during more than a millennium of persecution; they believe that their faithfulness has been such that they will not be tested like the apostles and the martyrs of Christ in ages past. This delusional state perfectly reflects why today's church is the one announced in Revelation 3:14-17.

All those who blindly believe that they will be raptured before the Second Coming are placing their faith in the conjectures and errors of human intelligence and casting aside the wisdom and warnings of the Almighty. Many, regrettably, will not be able to be ready to enter the furnace of trial and, without knowing it, will be part of those who will persecute God's true elect, believing for themselves that they are the elect:

"They will put you out of the synagogues; yes, the time is coming that whoever kills you will think that he offers God service." — John 16:2

The invitation is to read the Holy Scriptures with more diligence than ever. May each chapter be read carefully, attentively, and, ultimately, accompanied by a sincere prayer desiring to know God's true will for our lives.